himself up here. Apparently he’d passed that.
“Lupus,” he returned. My Wolf Soldiers called me by my first name, every one of them. It wasn’t familiarity; it was a different type of respect. In my world, God had no name, because no name could contain Him. I had no title for the Wolf Soldiers, because no title could measure their adoration of me. I’d made that up, but a few successful battles down the line and they believed it.
I gave them a second chance, in a land where no one gave someone like them a second chance.
“I remember you from the Battle of Tamaran Glen,” I informed him. “I noted you at Outpost IX. You’re a Captain in the Pack now, aren’t you?”
A sergeant in the Wolf Soldier Pack commanded ten men. A lieutenant commanded five sergeants. A Captain commanded as many as ten sergeants, or a total of five hundred warriors.
I was thinking of reducing that to five lieutenants, and then a major who would control four lieutenants, or an even thousand.
“I was promoted after Outpost IX,” he informed me. He looked me right in the eye. His face was cut by a hawk-nose, his eyebrows thick, green and stern. He kept his hair short where most preferred long, like mine.
I told him of my plan to restructure the Wolf Soldiers, adding, “I need names of warriors who are ready to be lieutenants.”
He nodded, saying nothing.
This guy was perfect.
“While we’re doing this,” I said, “I have a real need to get the Eldadorian Regulars out of the palace, and to replace them with my Wolf Soldiers.”
J’her looked deep into my eyes, as if the thoughts in my brain were accessible to him, if he looked deep enough. Who knows – maybe they were? Uman are a strange people.
“They won’t like that,” he informed me.
“I’d be surprised if they did,” I answered.
He nodded. “When?”
“I’ve got something to do,” I informed him. “While I’m gone, find a reason and make it happen. You’re a Major now – the first one. When you take over the barracks, make sure you have an office and your own room.”
He took the promotion without comment. This sort of thing was normally done in ceremony; however I had means to send the word out when I wanted to. I’d do that as soon as I left here.
“I’d like to see Wolf Soldiers, not Home Guard, when I get back,” I said. “It won’t be more than a few weeks.”
J’her nodded.
“And don’t make it something I’m going to hear spoken about,” I informed him. “It would be bad if a lot of loyal Eldadorian Regulars went missing, or if the rest of them were scared and wondering if they were next.”
“I agree,” he said.
I pointed at the door with my chin. He came to attention, made a fist over his heart by way of saluting me, and then dropped the salute, turned on his heel and opened the door for me. I walked out and he followed me out of the family tower.
It was nice to have one thing go my way.
The month Eveave ended as cold as its beginning. My Wolf Soldiers marched in perfect formation down the long road from Thera to Uman City, their cleats digging into the soil, in the cold months when no one ever made war.
It made sense not to. Men exerting themselves in the cold would sweat and get sick. The frozen ground made marching easier, however food became scarce and we could find no forage, so we had to either move supply wagons, which cost a mint, or carry our supplies with us, which slowed our army to a crawl. I’d chosen the latter.
Snow would make the roads impassable, when the snow melted, the mud made them worse. Blizzard stomped the hard ground, bobbed his head and snorted, loving it. He thrived at the head of 1,000 heavy lancers, a
“Lupus,” he returned. My Wolf Soldiers called me by my first name, every one of them. It wasn’t familiarity; it was a different type of respect. In my world, God had no name, because no name could contain Him. I had no title for the Wolf Soldiers, because no title could measure their adoration of me. I’d made that up, but a few successful battles down the line and they believed it.
I gave them a second chance, in a land where no one gave someone like them a second chance.
“I remember you from the Battle of Tamaran Glen,” I informed him. “I noted you at Outpost IX. You’re a Captain in the Pack now, aren’t you?”
A sergeant in the Wolf Soldier Pack commanded ten men. A lieutenant commanded five sergeants. A Captain commanded as many as ten sergeants, or a total of five hundred warriors.
I was thinking of reducing that to five lieutenants, and then a major who would control four lieutenants, or an even thousand.
“I was promoted after Outpost IX,” he informed me. He looked me right in the eye. His face was cut by a hawk-nose, his eyebrows thick, green and stern. He kept his hair short where most preferred long, like mine.
I told him of my plan to restructure the Wolf Soldiers, adding, “I need names of warriors who are ready to be lieutenants.”
He nodded, saying nothing.
This guy was perfect.
“While we’re doing this,” I said, “I have a real need to get the Eldadorian Regulars out of the palace, and to replace them with my Wolf Soldiers.”
J’her looked deep into my eyes, as if the thoughts in my brain were accessible to him, if he looked deep enough. Who knows – maybe they were? Uman are a strange people.
“They won’t like that,” he informed me.
“I’d be surprised if they did,” I answered.
He nodded. “When?”
“I’ve got something to do,” I informed him. “While I’m gone, find a reason and make it happen. You’re a Major now – the first one. When you take over the barracks, make sure you have an office and your own room.”
He took the promotion without comment. This sort of thing was normally done in ceremony; however I had means to send the word out when I wanted to. I’d do that as soon as I left here.
“I’d like to see Wolf Soldiers, not Home Guard, when I get back,” I said. “It won’t be more than a few weeks.”
J’her nodded.
“And don’t make it something I’m going to hear spoken about,” I informed him. “It would be bad if a lot of loyal Eldadorian Regulars went missing, or if the rest of them were scared and wondering if they were next.”
“I agree,” he said.
I pointed at the door with my chin. He came to attention, made a fist over his heart by way of saluting me, and then dropped the salute, turned on his heel and opened the door for me. I walked out and he followed me out of the family tower.
It was nice to have one thing go my way.
The month Eveave ended as cold as its beginning. My Wolf Soldiers marched in perfect formation down the long road from Thera to Uman City, their cleats digging into the soil, in the cold months when no one ever made war.
It made sense not to. Men exerting themselves in the cold would sweat and get sick. The frozen ground made marching easier, however food became scarce and we could find no forage, so we had to either move supply wagons, which cost a mint, or carry our supplies with us, which slowed our army to a crawl. I’d chosen the latter.
Snow would make the roads impassable, when the snow melted, the mud made them worse. Blizzard stomped the hard ground, bobbed his head and snorted, loving it. He thrived at the head of 1,000 heavy lancers, a
Similar Books
